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The month of September was Men’s Month at Benoté Salon. We dedicated the whole month to men by offering two free men’s haircut days and 20% discount on the entire line Mitch by Paul Mitchell products for the entire month.

Our family here at Benoté would like to say a special thank you to all of our patrons who came out to support our Men’s Month promotional. We had a very successful month! We had several men come in for free haircuts on our “Man Up Mondays”, and we sold a great deal of Mitch by Paul Mitchell products.

We are truly thankful to all of our customers for coming out to Benoté and showing your support!

Keep up with us to learn about our future promotions

including our holiday iPad Giveaway!

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Crowdfunding is the new black. Almost every day, I receive another alert for a Gofundme, Indiegogo or Kickstarter campaign with people asking me to donate for anything and everything, from funding weddings to medical procedures, to business endeavors. Businesses are finding ways to capitalize off of these initiatives, which may not necessarily be a bad thing. In this day and age, it’s difficult to get a substantial loan, especially for small businesses. But is there a way to crowdfund efficiently and effectively?

Companies may utilize crowdfunding for a number of reasons – to expand their inventory, grow staff, open a new store, or even get them out of debt. Earlier this year, there was a lot of buzz about the production of “CWK Straight Plates,” which promised nearly silky, straight hair without the use of heat, answering the prayers of many naturals. The project was successfully funded and…

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Maintaining beautiful hair has long been a part of civilization. However, contrasting cultures approach hair care differently, depending on the significance of hair color or texture, as well as prevailing popularities. Traditions, customs and beliefs shape the influence that hair has and how a people approach the significance that beautiful hair provides.

Native Americans, for example, took great care of their hair, applying grease and coloring to maintain health and add spiritual, individual or personal meaning. Southwestern Native Americans applied jojoba oil to their hair and skin to moisturize it, and the Chickasaw natives throughout the heartland would prevent dandruff and other scalp problems with a solution made from Willow tree wood. Generally, Native Americans did not trim or cut their hair, except during times of mourning, which was symbolic for the loss of a loved one. The deep spiritual meanings surrounding hair in the Native American culture can still be found today.

In ancient France, long, healthy hair was a sign of great power and importance. When Julius Caesar conquered Rome in 50 BC, he forced the French leaders to cut their hair, humiliating them and stripping them of their power. As time passed in France, the popularity of large heads of hair grew, ushering in the era of powdered wigs, a sign of legitimacy, wisdom and power in the 17th century, throughout France and Britain.

Throughout Africa, many cultures assigned great spiritual significance to hair, as it protected the head and thus, the mind. Often times, hair was not trimmed, as the exposed head was considered a playground for evil spirits. Even when the hair was eventually cut, great care was taken in the decision and not just anyone could cut the hair; it was necessary for the hairdresser to be a significant spiritual leader. To care for their hair, ancient Africans would use castor oil, olive oil, avocado oil and shea butter to enrich their hair, prevent dryness and protect from the sun’s harsh rays.

India was and remains a country where hair care, especially feminine hair care, is a societal priority. Women in India have worn long, thick, black hair as a sign of beauty for centuries, and in fact, the word “shampoo” comes from the Hindi word “cāṃpo!” which is the imperative form of the word meaning to knead or massage. Indian women also often adorn their hair in flowers or jewels, especially in times of celebration, giving further emphasis to the beauty and grace hair provides. To care for their hair, powders and tonics from Fenugreek seeds have been used as hair conditioners, and oil made from Indian gooseberries was used as a growth stimulant.

Hair is an important cultural symbol across the globe, and it always has been. Though times have changed, hair continues to express the cultural differences that are apparent in society, and especially here in America, we can learn a lot about other cultures by talking with our friends and family about our cultural differences.

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Within the hair regeneration cycle, hair loss occurs to make room for the new hair. The average person loses about 25 to 100 hairs normally each day. However, in more serious hair loss conditions, excess hair shedding occurs, causing more and more hair to fall out over time. Today, we will look at what happens during the hair regeneration cycle to cause hair loss and thinning.

As we have previously discussed, the hair regeneration cycle takes hair through a process of growth, loss and regrowth. Hair growth occurs in three phases: anagen, catagen and telogen. New hair growth occurs in the anagen phase, hair transitions in the catagen, and in the telogen phase, hair rests and makes room for new hair. With the last phase, some hair shedding is common.

However, in conditions relating to hair loss, this cycle of regeneration slows down and changes, causing more hair loss and less regrowth over time. Depending on the condition, the hair regeneration cycle begins to slow down and may eventually stop altogether.

Hereditary hair loss, or androgenetic alopecia, causes problems within the hair growth cycle. Over time, the genes and hormones in your body shrink your hair follicle, making it harder from hair to progress through the growth cycle. Progressive shrinking of scalp follicles short the length of the hair’s growth cycle, slowing down the process. As the follicles shrink, hair becomes thinner and shorter. Eventually, the hair growth cycle grinds to a halt and no hair growth occurs at all. With no growth occurring and the follicle shrinking, remaining hair is pushed out. In 95 percent of cases, hair loss is the cause of androgenetic alopecia.

Telogen Effluvium

Telogen Effluvium is the second most common form of hair loss. Telogen Effluvium is linked to traumatic body experiences such as childbirth, malnutrition, severe infection, major surgery or extreme stress. In cases of Telogen Effluvium, many of the hairs in the anagen (growing) or catagen (resting) phase suddenly shift into the shedding (telogen) phase. With 90 percent of all hair being in the anagen or catagen phase, large amounts of hair can be lost during the shift, but for most, this condition does not cause total hair loss. In the majority of cases, this condition can be fully reversible as the hair follicles are not permanent or irreversibly affected. This condition affects women more often than men, due to its link to childbirth.

Anagen Effluvium

Anagen effluvium is the result of any insult to the hair follicle that impairs its cellular activity. As a result of damage to the matrix- where hair cells multiply and differentiate, the hair shafts rapidly narrow during anagen effluvium. Eventually, the hair shaft will fracture at the site of the narrowing, causing hair to shed. This condition is most commonly associated with cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Since these substances inhibit rapid cell division, the rapidly dividing hair cells are often attacked. As a result, the hair fiber production is completely frozen and shut down. This condition is very rapid and can cause complete hair loss. However, anagen effluvium is totally reversible and recovery is equally as rapid.

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As you grow, the hair on your head grows and changes with you. How does the hair grow, though? How does it know to regenerate when you’ve lost some? Well, your hair has several phases of growth, and as you age, the chemical makeup of your hair changes. Here we will discuss the growth phases and how your hair regenerates.

Even before you’re born, all of the hair follicles on your body have formed, with about 100,000 on your scalp. As you grow, the size of your head will change, so even though you may have a “thick head of hair” as a child, the follicles on your head will spread out, leaving you with seemingly thinner hair. That doesn’t necessarily mean that the actual thickness of each strand has changed, though. It only means that the density of your hair has changed.

There are three phases of growth for your hair. Each strand is in its own stage of the cycle, which is great since you wouldn’t want to lose all of the hair on your head at the same time. The three phases are:

Anagen Phase

This is known as the “growth phase”. The cells in the root of each strand of hair are dividing rapidly, pushing the existing strand out of the follicle. About 85% of the hairs on your head are in this phase at any given time, and they will remain in this growth phase for 2-6 years. During this time, the hair will grow about ½ an inch per month. Depending on how long this phase remains, for you, you may not be able to grow the hair on your head past a certain length.

Catagen Phase

This is the phase where the strand stops growing, meaning that the cells stop dividing. However, the length of your hair will still increase during this phase. This is because the follicle shrinks, pushing the strand of hair upwards and outwards. About 3% of the strands of hair on your head are in this transitional phase, which lasts between 2 and 3 weeks.

Telogen Phase

This is the “resting phase” where your hair remains dormant from 1 to 4 months. Around 10 to 15% of your hairs are in this phase, waiting to be shed as new hairs grow. In fact, you naturally shed around 100 hairs in the telogen phase each day. Once this phase is completed, the follicle will have already started growing a new hair.

This natural cycle is maintained through biology, and your genetics greatly affect how much hair will grow and just how quickly your length will increase. Remember to speak to your stylist about the best ways to maintain a healthy scalp and help promote growth.

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Just as you age, your hair ages through a process of growth, loss and regrowth. The hair on your head is in constant differing states of this aging process.

However, if you are waiting long periods of time between trims and haircuts, your hair could be older than you think. As new growth pushes through your scalp, healthy and full of nutrients, the ends of your hair continues aging, taking on damage from everyday elements. If you aren’t getting regular trims, the damage in your aging ends could be hurting your hair.

As we noted earlier, hair is in a constant cycle of growth. The hair growth cycle consists of three phases, with all hairs going through the phases at different times. The first phase is the anagen phase. During the anagen phase, new hair growth occurs. This phase can last anywhere between two to eight years. Longer anagen phase rates produce longer hair growth. Approximately 85 percent of all hairs are in the growth phase at one time.

However, it is within this phase where your ends could be aging the most. As the new growth comes in at the scalp, the ends of the strands stay as they were, no longer getting the nutrients of help from the hair follicle. The longer your hair grows, the more the ends of your hair age. Depending on how long your growth rate and the ends could be several years older than the new growth. The ends of your hair could be suffering from damage from weather exposure, heat exposure and chemical exposure. The damaged ends can also wreak havoc on your new growth. Damaged ends can rip apart and split the ends of your hair, causing permanent, irreversible damage to your hair.

So what can you do to prevent the ends of your hair from aging?

To prevent the ends of your hair from aging, get your hair professionally trimmed regularly. Every six to eight weeks, schedule a trim with your hairstylist to remove split and broken ends. If it has been a while since your hair cut, a few inches may need to be cut off, but after that, your stylist should only have to remove the split ends by cutting just an inch.

As you grow, your hair goes through a cycle of growth and loss and regrowth. Human hair is random, not seasonal or cyclical like other mammals. At any given time, hair will be at one of three growth stages, with every hair at a different stage.

To first understand the growth stages of hair, we should look at what makes up our hair. There are two distinct structures to hair: the follicle and the shaft. The hair follicle is a tunnel-like segment of the outer layer of skin that extends down into the second layer of skin called the dermis. At the base of the hair follicle is the dermal papilla which contains tiny blood vessels that provide nourishment to the cells. Surrounding the papilla is the bulb, the living part of the hair. The cells of the bulb divide faster than any other cell in the body, dividing every 24 to 72 hours. Two sheaths surround the hair follicle, an inner and outer sheath, which protect and form the growing hair. The hair shaft is made of keratin, a hard protein, and is composed of three layers. The inner layer is medulla, the middle layer is the cortex and the outer layer is the cuticle. The cortex makes up the majority of the hair shaft and holds the hair’s pigment with the medulla.

The first stage of hair growth is referred to as the anagen phase. The anagen stage is the growth phase, usually lasting between two to eight years. During this stage, the growth cells in the papilla rapidly divide, producing the hair shaft which becomes keratinized as it pushes up and out of the follicle. During the same time, the follicle grows down deeper into the dermis to get nourishment. People with long anagen growth rates are able to grow longer hair than those with shorter anagen phases. Approximately 85% of all hairs are in the growth phase at one time.

Following the anagen phase, the hair goes through a transitional stage, referred to as the catagen stage. This stage usually occurs over a brief two to four weeks. During the catagen phase, the hair follicle shrinks and breaks away from the dermal papilla. As the hair follicle separates from the papilla, the bulb detaches from the blood supply and the hair shaft is pushed up as the follicle disintegrates. About three percent of all hairs are in this stage at any given time.

The follicle then goes into the resting phase known as the telogen stage. The telogen phase lasts from two to four months, during which the hair does not grow, but remains attached to the follicle. In this phase of hair growth, the follicle and the dermal papilla below are completely at rest. Approximately 10-15 percent of all hairs are in the telogen phase at one time. As the resting phase comes to an end and new hair is formed, old telogen hairs are pushed out and lost. About 50-100 telogen hairs are lost at this time due to the growth process, which is considered normal hair shedding.

Once the telogen phase ends, the hair growth cycle is complete. Hair will go back into the anagen stage and the process begins again.

Happy Sunday, everyone! I just got back from the gym and I am ready to grow with this challenge!! Just took my starting pics then remembered why I hate monitoring growth because measuring your hair stinks! But I got over it. Here are my pics. I measured my hair a few times and consistently got around 20 inches, then yanked out one strand of hair and measured that and got about 21 inches, so I’ll use 20.5 inches as my starting point.

Also, although I don’t believe vitamins grow hair (you all know how I feel about that!), I can’t have a good ol’ fashioned growth challenge without making sure I’m getting all my nutrients. I’m currently taking Irwin Naturals Healthy Skin and Hair Plus Nails (I like these b/c they are gel caps instead of horse pills) until my Manetabolism comes. I’m also concentrating on my nutrition and…

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It’s no secret that the natural hair product business is booming due to the increase in women choosing their natural hair over relaxers. Even several companies that traditionally catered to relaxed and straight hair have come out with lines for natural hair. Countless ads featuring big, coily, curly and kinky hair displayed on buses, billboards and online encourage naturals to try out a company’s products in hopes that their hair will yield the same results.

However, I often find myself looking at these ads slightly confused. Why? Because the hair shown is too perfect and natural hair isn’t perfect. Our hair is beautiful and frizzy at the same time. But time and time again, we are shown images that imply that we should never have a curl out of place. Take this ad below for African Pride’s new texture manageability system for example:

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As parents we are complimented on the way we grow and look after our children. Hair is a massive part of how are children will be conditioned and treated in todays society, and various settings that they will encounter as well as the everyday interaction they have with other children and adults. And it’s down to us as parents to make sure that they are confident and proud of their hair texture and quality.

I’ve put together ten tips on how become more aware on what we need to look out for to give our children the best when to comes to their hair.

Investigate. Understand your child’s hair texture. Does it dry out in the sun? Is the scalp always dry? What breaks or snaps or thins the hair? Once you have an idea, you’ll then know what points you need to focus on and what…

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At Benote, we offer a wide variety of hair and scalp treatments. These are designed to give you a healthy scalp and luxurious, strong hair.

The foundation of healthy hair lies in a healthy scalp. Our dermabrasion treatment helps nourish and exfoliate the skin, improving the health of your scalp. This treatment uses deep exfoliation to dissolve the oils and buildup around the scalp. Through exfoliation, our dermabrasion treatment unclogs the follicles of your hair, making it easier to grow strong, healthy hair. Our scalp serum treatments work along these lines by nourishing and revitalising the scalp. This treatment restores health to your scalp, provides nourishment and promotes healthy hair.

Our Fiberceutic treatment is a 2-step treatment designed by L’Oreal. This treatment helps strengthen and rebuild the hair fiber from the inside while protecting against further damage. It uses intra-cylane molecules which penetrate the hair fiber to recreate structure and strength in your hair from the inside-out. The Fiberceutic treatment will help your damaged hair regain its natural condition and leave you hair feeling firm, silky and healthy.

At Benote, we also offer the Awapuhi Wild Ginger KeraTriplex Treatment. This revolutionary treatment, designed by Paul Mitchell, will leave you with younger-looking, healthier hair. The highly concentrated blend of keratin proteins penetrate into your hair’s cortex, repairing and sealing the hair from the inside out. This 2-step treatment provides deep repairs to damaged hair and protects from future damage while delivering deep hydration and moisture to your hair.

As self-proclaimed beauty product junkies, we know a thing or two about the latest and greatest items to hit the beauty department. We test, we experiment, and we play around with some of the coolest breakthroughs in the business, and it’s only right that we share this knowledge with the world.

Whether you’ve been hearing about konjac sponges and can’t wait to figure out what they actually do, or you’re simply curious about the real difference between all of those makeup brushes you have in a drawer, you’ve come to the right place. Below is a beauty product glossary that will become your best friend while shopping the beauty aisle. With everything from finishing sprays to exfoliating powders, read on for some serious product education.

Airbrush Foundation: Traditionally used by professional makeup artists, airbrush foundation has made its way to the at-home market in recent years. Packaged either in an aerosol…

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Seeking healthy hair is always a good idea no matter how much damage you’ve done over the years. Does anyone else have a journey similar to this? Benoté carries a number of products that can help with this process. Ask us about our treatments!! 318-828-2437
#benotesalon #healthyhair #hairtreatment #shreveport #louisiana

What I’ve always known is that my hair grows and grows well.
The problem however is breakage.
My hair as at some ten years ago was way beyondshoulder length. I was at 12inches to 14 inches but I couldn’t maintain that length without my mothers help.
I used dark and lovely relaxer for a very long time and I loved the way it actually thinned my hair out made it manageable too.
I used the super because my hair reverted after using regular.
Been on dark and lovely since 1998.
A very long time of about 12 years.
What I think protected my hair in all that time was

1.the henna mask I used religiously after every wash and I wasn’t doing a lot of weaves.
2. I used pink oil before any heat processing on my hair
3. I used organics hair mayonnaise every single day. 4. I tucked…

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Has anyone ever told you that you have good hair? Ever wondered what good hair is? Well here it is, a comparison of all things hair. Let talk about how straight, curly, wavy, fine, thin, coarse and damaged hair differ from each other.

Hair is different for many reasons. The three that are the most predominant factors in deciding what kind of hair you will have naturally are the follicle, chemical bonds made in the hair, and genetics. Each of these has a slightly different effect and contributes to the overall hair. The chemical bonds in hair can be changed to temporarily achieve a different look or type of hair, but any new growth will be in the original form, due to genetics and the follicle.

Straight hair has a straight follicle. The growth of the stem or hair strands is unimpeded and the follicle is thickest in this form. The follicle creates a circle which causes the oil glands in your scalp to release evenly distributed and natural oils throughout the hair. This is what gives straight hair its silky and shiny texture. It is also the reason why people with straight hair have to shampoo more often. The oil can build up resulting in a naturally greasy look and clumped together hair that is more sticky than silky.

Curly hair has a curved follicle which causes the natural curliness. The shape of the pore also affects this as it can be an oval or crescent shape which determines how curly your hair is. Loosely curly hair with an oval shape is the cause to curly hair that merges together to form bigger curls usually found in white people. The more wiry hair that doesn’t group together usually found in black people is caused by the thinner crescent shape, which results in more randomized patterns. Curly hair is usually found to be less silky and shiny due to the oil gland in the scalp not being able to distribute oil evenly through the hair, which is cause by the curve of the follicle, the less open glands and the hair itself getting in the way of spread. You will notice that people with loosely curled hair and tightly curled hair have widely different textures.

Wavy hair is produced by a mixture of the two. It is the result of a curved follicle with a circle shaped opening allowing the same curve and more oil to get to the hair, which helps in detangling and allowing the hair to grow longer than in the oval or crescent form. Those with tightly curled hair can achieve a wavy form by straightening the hair using various methods. This can result in styles like 360 waves for men or a finger wave in women.

Fine hair is a product of the number of follicles found in your head. At the age of about 22 weeks still in the womb, you will have developed all the follicles you will ever have in your life time. The more follicles you have in close succession to each other will determine if you have fine or thin hair. Hair is one of the only renewing sources on the human body that can grow cyclically, but there are only so many predetermined cycles for any one person. Once a follicle has reached the end of its cycle life, this is when hair begins to thin or people start to go bald. Coarse hair is produced when the hair isn’t getting enough moisture from your oil glands. It can be remedied with some consumer products found at your local store or salon. Damaged hair that is out of its natural state due to an occurrence. When silky hair becomes coarse it is damaged or when hair is dried too much in that case. This is most common when applying chemicals and heat to hair to change its natural state without proper care and precautions.

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Benote Salon offers a wide range of services for hair of any type and texture. With their knowledge and experience, Benote stylists are dedicated to providing quality service and care. We use only the finest products to keep your hair healthy and beautiful.

Benote offers a large variety of services to suit the needs of any customer. Whether you are looking for just a simple bang cut or needing full-head extensions, Benote offers stylists with the experience to do it all. Benote is a multi-level salon, with the price of the services varying based off the experience and availability of the stylists. We offer a full range of coloring services including color demi-glaze, one process color, color retouches and full and partial foils. Standard procedures include guest consult, basic wash and style, men’s and women’s haircut and haircut/style services. Benote also offers extension services (full, partial and full head) as well as braids ranging from individual to large. Flat/Scalp Twists are offered along with small and standard twists. Partial and retouch relaxer services are offered at Benote. Benote also offers a number of hair and scalp treatments including dermabrasion, scalp serum, and basic moisture treatments. Our stylists provide a number of popular conditioning treatments such as Fiberceutic, Keratriplex and L’Oreal Powerdoses. Benote Salon uses high-quality products to ensure your hair is healthy and beautiful. These products include Chromatics hair color, New Precious Oil and Awapahi Wild Ginger.

The stylists at Benote are excellently trained and sure to provide you with the best quality service. Yolanda Gates is the owner and master stylist at Benote, opening the renowned salon in 2009. She has become one of the top names in Louisiana in natural hair and is well-known for her hair coloring techniques. She spends hours researching innovative, new products that will best serve her guests. Clients appreciate her knowledge and attention to detail, as well as her detail-oriented approach to hair care. Bernish Dupree is a level 1 stylist at Benote Salon. A graduate of Regency Beauty Institute, Bernisha possess a passion for hair as well as a fantastic talent in makeup and eyelash application. Not only does she specialize in braiding, she also has unique skill in styling natural hair, formulating color, placing foils and cutting. The newest member of the Benote Salon is Victoria Tillis. She works alongside Yolanda, using her modern style and techniques to keep hair healthy, luxurious and stylish. Victoria’s focuses include sophisticated hair, bonded and sewn hair extension, facial waxing and makeup and eyelash application.

Benote Salon provides a welcoming atmosphere with talented stylists who provide a variety of services for all types of hair. We are centrally located in Shreveport, Louisiana on Youree Drive. We are open Tuesday through Friday 9:00 am to 6:00 pm and Saturday 8:00 am to 7:00 pm.